


Conlang Dialogue: Game of Thrones, Episode 805

by Dedalvs



Series: Conlang Dialogue: Game of Thrones (HBO) [4]
Category: Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: High Valyrian (ASoIaF), Valyrian, conlang
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-13
Updated: 2019-05-13
Packaged: 2020-03-02 14:14:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 57
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18812578
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dedalvs/pseuds/Dedalvs
Summary: This is the created language dialogue from episode 805 of HBO'sGame of Thrones. (Please note: This post contains spoilers for episode 805 ofGame of Thrones.)





	Conlang Dialogue: Game of Thrones, Episode 805

DANY  
It’s all right, Torgo Nudho. Let me speak with him.

TRANSLATION  
_Lykso, Torgo Nudho. Ziry ȳdraon botās._

TYRION  
I drink to eat the skull keeper.

TRANSLATION  
_Nyke mōzun ipradagon bartanna rāelio._

TYRION  
I want to eat the skull keeper.

TRANSLATION  
_Nyke jaelio ipradagon bartanno rāelia._

TYRION  
I want to see the—

TRANSLATION  
_Nyke jaelion urnegon bartanno—_

**Author's Note:**

> I can't remember where the Tyrion speaking Valyrian jokes started (was it season 5?), but he's just been getting worse and worse and worse as the seasons have worn on. This is the worst. I honestly feel a little bad, because I see myself in this scene. I think a lot of language learners do. What I was imagining is that Tyrion was going for the phrase _belmurta rāelty_ , "chained kept-person". Now, that in itself is not quite right (High Valyrian does have a word for "prisoner", after all— _ozgūroty_ ), because it should be _belmurte rāelti_ (as the object of the sentence, it needs to be in the accusative case), but for Tyrion, that would be pretty clever if he didn't know the word for "prisoner". Unfortunately he flubs up the verbs, and comes up with "drink" and "eat"—two high frequency items that are not really close to "want" and "see". Realizing his mistake, though, causes other problems.
> 
> Once Tyrion corrects the first verb, he messes up the conjugation (it should be _jaelan_ or _jaelun_ not _jaelio_ ), and then swaps the endings around for his last two words. This is something I do in German _all_ the time: I screw up the verb, I go to fix it, and suddenly I'm not saying _großen Saft_ anymore, but something like _große Saften_ , which is all wrong.
> 
> Now Tyrion comes back as he remembers the verb he's after. He's got a new conjugation, _jaelion_ (he remembered the _n_ , but still has weird vowels!), gets the right verb, and proceeds on with his last mistake before getting corrected.
> 
> Poor Tyrion! These are the types of mistakes that second language users make when they're feeling self-conscious. Ever since he showed up in Meereen, he's been surrounded by multilingual people whom he's tried to hang with, but he just can't cut it. Consequently his Valyrian has been getting worse and worse as he keeps overthinking it.


End file.
